Method of and means for cutting heel-lifts



2 sheets-sheet 1.

(No Modrel.)l

' G. JAMES. i

METHOD oF AND MEANS NoN CUTTING HEEL uns.

No. 361,065. v

Patented Apr. 12, 1887.

2 sheets-sheet (No Model.)

G. JAMES.

METHOD 0E AND MEANS EOE CUTTING HEEL LITTS.

PatentedApr. 12, 1881.

4o journaled the main shaft b, having affixed with crank mechanism d,connected by a pitton, in the county of Suffolk and Stateof Mas- GEORGEJAMEs, or Bos vwurm-loo oF AND MEANSF PATENT OFFICE.'

TON, MASSACHUSETTS.

OR CUTTING HEEL-LIFTS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No.- 361,065, dated April12, 1887.

` Application filed October 30, 1886.

To all whom it may concern,.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE JAMES, of Bossachusetts, have inventedcertain newand useful Improvements in Methods of and Meansfor CuttingOut Heel-Lifts, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to the mode of and means for cutting outheel-lifts for boots and shoes, and has for its object to provide ani1nproved process of gaging or governing the feed of the material beingoperated upon in order to secure exactness in position of the same inregard to the cutting-die, so as to reduce waste of leather to theminimum and avoid the cut-v ting out of imperfect lifts, and toconstruct improved means for carrying out this process.

To these ends my invention consists in the improvements,whichl will nowproceed to describe, so that others skilled in the art mayv make and useor practice the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,and to the letters of reference marked thereon, forming a part of thisspecification, and the invention being particularly pointed out anddistinctly claimed at the end of the description of its construction andmanner of use.

v Of the drawings, Figure 1 represents an end view of a machineembodying my improved means, parts beingvbroken away. Fig. 2 is a frontelevation of the same. Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the machine, thecross-head and some of its associated parts being broken away. Figs. 4and 5 kare diagrams illustrating the steps pursued in my improved mode.of procedure.

Similar letters of reference indicate similar parts in all of the views.Y

a represents the frame, in which is suitably thereto a fly or balancewheel, c, and provided man, e, with a treadle, f. v

g represents a cross head or beam attached to one end of armsh, pivotedat their opposite ends to the upper part of the frame. The main shaftcarries two disks, i z', one at each end, to which are eccentricallyconnected the lower ends of rods j j, the upper ends of which arepivoted to arms h. Y

k indicates the bed of the machine, provided Serial No. 217,592. (Nomodel.)

ywith an adjustable side or edge guide, Z, of

common construction.

v m represents a die having the form of the heel-lift to be cut, whichdie is secured to the cross head or beam g in the usual manner; and nrepresents a stabber or marker, also secured to the cross head or beamg. Said stabber or marker is sharpened at its lower end, and sopositioned with respect to the cutting-die m as that when a series ot'heels is being cut from a piece or strip of leather-as,for example, astrip capable of having two series of lifts cnt therefrom, asrepresented in Figs. 4 and -it will stab or indent the material at apoint opposite the rounded portion of thelift cut out, and what would bemidway between' the sides of such lift if it were extended into thestrip or side of leather, so that when the next series of lifts are cutfor the material in such manner that their rounded ends will fallv*between the like ends of the previously-cut lifts, said indenta tionsor stabs will come between the lifts, and preferably in the cut-away orwaste material, as shown particularly in Fi gs. 4 and 5,in which cearepresent heel-lifts cut from a strip of material; b b', the stabs orindentations made in the material in cutting out such lifts; and c c',the points at which the next series of lifts will be cut from thematerial.

, It is obvious that .the stabber or marker may be so positioned on thecross-head as to stab or mark the material at a point which will fall onthe line of a cut subsequently made by the die m, the object being tonot mark or mar the material at a point falling within the lines of aheel-lift that may be cut out.`

o represents two vertically-arranged rods, one on each side of themachine, the lower ends of which rest on the periphery of the disks i,provided at a proper point with a camswell, p, as shown in Fig. 1. Saidrods o are pivotally connected at their upper ends each with the outerend of a short arm, q, rigidly Vaffixed at its other end to arock-shaft, r, jour- ICO f cut or die out a heel-lift, a.

from, as represented in Figs. et and 5, is placed upon the bed la, andthe side or edge guide, Z, adjusted so as to bring the edge of the material in proper position with respect to the cutter m. The machineisoperated by the treadle f to bring the cutter m upon the material andThe stabber n at the same time operates to stab or mark the strip byindependent marks, as at b', which is at a point precisely midwaybetween the series of lifts c' next to be eut after the series a havebeen died out. As the cutter and stabber are raised the eam-swell p onthe disk i passes under the lower end of rod o, which operates in a waythat will be readily understood to raise finger' t, and allow the stripof material to be moved along thereunder to a point where said finger twill drop into the stab, indentation, or mark made by the stabber n,which will bring the material in exact position to have the cutter m inits next operation die out a lift, a,with the least possible waste,making another stab or mark, b, as before. After the series of lifts ahave been cut or died out, the strip is reversed in position so as tobring its other edge against the guide Z, and another series oflifts,c',are cut from the other side of the strip so their rounded endswill fall between the rounded ends of the previously cut series, asshown, the guide or gage linger t at the other side of the bed operatingin the marks or stabs b as the material is fed along,to secure exactnessof position of the strip or piece with respect to the cutter m.

It will be understood that in cutting out the first series of lifts, a',from the strip guidenger t operates without effect along the line fromwhich such lifts are being cut, and that when the stri p is reversedboth'the stabber a and the guide-finger t operate without effect alongthe line from which said lifts a had been cut, the stabs or marks b nowcoming into position, so that guideiinger t at the side of the machineopposite guide-finger twill operate in said stabs or marks. In otherwords, in a strip of material like that represented in Fig. 4, fromwhich two series of lifts are eut, but a singleline or series of stabs,b, are made, and which is accomplished when the first series of lifts aare being cut out, said stabs or marks serving as a guide for bothseries-that is to say, when the first lift a was eut from the materialthe first stab b was made therein. The material was then fed along toguide-fnger t, (guide-finger L' operating without effect,) and the nextlift was cut, and another stab or mark was made for the next lift. Uponreversing the strip guide-finger t falls in the marks or stabs b', andfinger t and stabber a operate without effect along the line from whichthe series of lifts a were cut from the strips.

By the method and means described absolute precision of position of thepiece or strip with respect to the cutter is secured and unnecessarywaste of material and imperfectly cut lifts avoided.

It is not essential to my method that the precise means shown forstabbing or marking the strip or material should be employed, or that itshould be operated in the exact manner explained, or that the strip ormaterial should be stabbed at the precise point indicated, the essentialfeature with respect to this step being that the material shall bestabbed or marked at some point having each time the same relationshipas to position to the die or cutter, and so that a gage of any desirableform or construction, and operated in any suitable way, may be enabledto guide the material to exactly proper position at each successiveoperation, and thus avoid waste of material. The means herein shown anddescribed are, however, the best known to me for carrying out myimproved method.

W'hat I cla-im is- 1. The art of producing heel-lifts, which consists incutting out a lift and simultaneously marking at one side of the liftcut out, preferably at a point half the width of the lift to the rear ofthe front side of the lift so cut out, and then feeding the materialforward until the mark previously made coincides with a point which ishalf the width of the lift in advance of the front edge of the lift dieor punch, and repeating these steps, all substantially as and for thepurposes hereinbefore set forth.

2. Theimprovement in the art of producing heel-lifts, which consists incutting out a lift and simultaneously marking at one side of the liftcnt out, substantially at a point opposite the rounded portion ofthenext lift to be cutout, and what would be substantially midway betweenthe sides of such last-mentioned lift if they were extended into thestrip or side of leather, then feeding the material forward the distancecorresponding exactly to the width of a lift, and setting a gage so asto register with the mark previously made, and cutting out another liftand marking the material, as before, then feeding the material forwardso that the mark last made will register with the gage, and againcutting out a lift and marking the material, as before, and repeatingthese operations to complete the cutting out of aline or series oflifts, then cutting out a lift of another line or series of lifts insuch manner that its rounded end will fall between the like ends of twopreviously-eut lifts of the preceding series, and arranginga gage tocorrespond with one of the marks previously made in the material, andfeeding the latter forward so that the next mark in line, made as beforeexplained, will range or register with said gage, and cutting outanother lift, and repeating these operations to cut out a second seriesof lifts, as set forth.

3. In an apparatus for cutting out heel-lifts, a cross-head, acutting-die, and a stabber or marker, n, affixed to the cross-head, thelatter outside of the former, and mechanism for operating the same,combined, arranged, and operating substantially as hcreinbefore setforth.

IIO

. 4. In an apparatus for cutting out heel-lifts, l tothis specification,in the presence of two subacross-head, acutting-die,astabberormarker,scribing Witnesses, this 22d day of October, n, thereon, the bed of themachine, anda 1886.

guide or gage finger thereon, and mechanism GEORGE JAMES. 5 foroperating the same, combined, arranged, Witnesses:

and operating substantially as set forth. ARTHUR NV. G RossLEY,

In testimony whereof I have signed my name C. E. BROWN.

